WABI
WABI
SABI
Broken, But More Beautiful
↓
500+
Restored Pieces
Cherished objects renewed
30
Years of Mastery
Three decades of craft
24K
Pure Gold Lacquer
Authentic urushi technique
∞
Lifetime Guarantee
Every repair honored forever
Philosophy

The Art of
Imperfection

In the Japanese tradition of kintsugi, the break is not hidden — it is illuminated. Each fracture becomes a golden seam, each flaw a testament to a life lived. We do not restore to the original. We restore to something greater.

侘び

Wabi — Rustic Beauty

The beauty found in simplicity and imperfection. A cracked glaze, an asymmetric form — these are not failures but expressions of authenticity. We honor the original imperfections that make each piece unique.

寂び

Sabi — Patina of Time

The quiet beauty of age and wear. The worn edges, the faded colors — time has touched this vessel and left its mark. In kintsugi, we celebrate this passage rather than erase it.

金継

Kintsugi — The Golden Repair

Gold flows where fractures were. The break is not disguised — it becomes the most beautiful part. In mending, we create. In loss, we discover. The repaired piece carries more wisdom than the whole.

Our Services

Every Break
Deserves Gold

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Emergency Pottery Repair
01

Emergency Repair

For precious pieces broken recently. Swift, careful assessment and traditional urushi bonding to stabilize and restore. We begin within 48 hours of receipt.

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Full Kintsugi Restoration
02

Full Restoration

The complete kintsugi journey — assessment, cleaning, urushi bonding, pure 24k gold gilding, and final polish. The masterwork that transforms damage into beauty.

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Kintsugi Workshops
03

Private Workshops

Learn the ancient art in our Tokyo-inspired studio. One-day and two-day immersions for individuals and intimate groups. All materials provided, all levels welcome.

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Gold Selection
04

Gold Type Selection

Choose your transformation: 24k pure gold for luminous brilliance, silver for quiet moonlight, platinum for contemporary refinement, or copper for warm, autumnal depth.

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The WABI Studio Studio Detail
The Studio

A Space Where
Time Stops

"We do not repair for function. We repair for memory, for love, for the recognition that what was broken was worth keeping."

Located in a converted warehouse, our studio breathes the philosophy it practices. Warm amber light filters through shoji screens. Shelves line the walls with pieces in various stages of their transformation — each one a story of damage overcome, of beauty found in the fracture.

Location
Tokyo-inspired, London
Founded
1994, Kyoto
Technique
Traditional Urushi
Master
Hiroshi Tanaka
Our Method

The Kintsugi
Journey

Each restoration follows five ancient steps, refined over three decades of practice. Patience is not a virtue here — it is the medium.

I

Assessment

Gentle examination of each fracture, each fragment. Understanding the piece's history, material, and the nature of its damage before any intervention begins.

II

Cleaning

Patient removal of old adhesives, debris, and oxidation. The edges are prepared with the care one would offer a wound. Nothing is rushed.

III

Urushi Bonding

Traditional urushi lacquer is applied to join the fragments. The piece rests in a humidity-controlled chamber for up to two weeks as the bond cures slowly.

IV

Gold Gilding

Pure gold powder is dusted over the wet lacquer seam with a bamboo brush. Layer by layer, the fracture becomes luminous. The transformation is complete.

V

Final Polish

The surface is burnished to reveal the full depth of the gold. A final washi-paper wrapping for safe return, with documentation of the restoration story.

Japanese Heritage
1994
Founded Kyoto
Japanese Roots

Born in the
Mountains of Kyoto

Our founder, Hiroshi Tanaka, learned kintsugi in the traditional ateliers of Kyoto's Gion district — apprenticing under master lacquerer Kenji Mori for a decade before establishing his own studio. The practice came to London in 2008, carrying unchanged the methods taught by generations of Japanese craftspeople.

Muromachi Origins

The art of kintsugi originated in the 15th century Muromachi period, born from the philosophy that broken objects have greater beauty for having been broken.

Natural Materials Only

We refuse synthetic substitutes. Our urushi is harvested from the urushi tree in Japan, our gold is certified 24-karat. Every material has a provenance.

Annual Kyoto Visit

Each year, our master returns to Kyoto to study, gather materials, and renew the bonds of tradition. The practice evolves, but the roots hold.

Teaching Forward

We have trained 14 apprentices in the past decade. The tradition lives only as long as it is passed. Teaching is as sacred as the work itself.

Stories of Return

Those Who
Trusted the Break

"My grandmother's tea bowl shattered in a move — three pieces I thought irreparable. WABI returned it six weeks later transformed. The gold seams are extraordinary. I display it now as the centerpiece of my home."

E
Eleanor Ashworth
Collector, London

"I was skeptical that a broken piece could be beautiful. WABI proved me profoundly wrong. The repair is not just invisible — it is the most beautiful part of the bowl. The philosophy is real."

M
Marcus Beaumont
Ceramics Scholar, Oxford

"The workshop changed how I see damage — in ceramics and in life. Hiroshi's teaching was patient, wise, deeply human. I left with a repaired piece and a different way of perceiving imperfection."

S
Suki Nakamura
Artist, Edinburgh

"An heirloom Japanese vase, broken decades ago, sat in a box untouched. WABI restored it in a way that honors both its history and its damage. This is not restoration — it is resurrection."

R
Richard Tanaka
Heritage Curator, Tokyo
Begin Your Story

Entrust Us
With the Broken

Every piece begins with a conversation. Tell us about your object — its history, its damage, your hopes for what it might become. We respond within 48 hours.

  • Free initial assessment by our master
  • Transparent quote before any work begins
  • Photographic progress documentation
  • Fully insured collection and return service
  • Lifetime guarantee on all repairs